SENATE MEMORIAL 17

56th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - second session, 2024

INTRODUCED BY

Elizabeth "Liz" Stefanics and Gerald Ortiz y Pino

and Linda M. L pez and Brenda G. McKenna

 

 

 

 

A MEMORIAL

REQUESTING THE HEALTH CARE AUTHORITY DEPARTMENT TO COMMISSION AN ANNUAL REPORT RELATING TO THE DIRECT CARE WORKER WORKFORCE AND REQUESTING ADJUSTMENTS TO PAYMENTS TO PERSONAL CARE SERVICE PROVIDER AGENCIES.

 

     WHEREAS, New Mexico faces serious challenges in providing for the needs of those requiring care and recruiting and retaining well-trained direct care workers; and

     WHEREAS, direct care workers are those workers who provide care to New Mexico's disabled and elderly persons and work as personal care assistants, home care aides, home health aides and certified nursing assistants; and

     WHEREAS, direct care workers work in a variety of settings, including private homes, assisted living residences, adult daycare centers, nursing homes and other residential care settings; and

     WHEREAS, it is estimated that New Mexico will need to fill at least sixty-six thousand direct care worker jobs over a ten-year period; and

     WHEREAS, persons with disabilities and the elderly suffer the effects of direct care worker shortages and a high turnover rate among workers; and

     WHEREAS, possible reasons for direct care worker shortages in New Mexico such as low wages, a lack of benefits or inadequate training opportunities need to be thoroughly examined and understood in order to devise solutions that will bring in workers and provide them with the personal and professional satisfaction to encourage a more stable and reliable workforce;

     NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO that the health care authority department be requested to work in conjunction with the statewide coalition of New Mexico caregivers to initiate creation of an annual report examining and detailing information on the direct care worker workforce; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the health care authority department be requested to complete the first direct care worker workforce annual report by April 1, 2025; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that as part of the direct care worker workforce report, each personal care service provider agency be requested to submit data regarding direct care workers, including:

          A. the number of full-time and part-time direct care workers employed at any time during the previous calendar year;

          B. the percentage of the previous calendar year that each employee was employed by the agency;

          C. the total length of employment for each employee as of the end of the previous calendar year;

          D. disaggregated demographic information on direct care workers that includes:

                (1) age;

                (2) gender;

                (3) race and ethnicity; and

                (4) education level;

          E. the hourly wage paid to each direct care worker during the previous calendar year;

          F. employee benefits provided to direct care workers in the previous calendar year; and

          G. the number of vacant direct care worker positions that the personal care service provider agency had not filled as of the end of the previous calendar year; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the format for data reporting provide for sufficient confidentiality to protect both an individual direct care worker's identifying information and an individual personal care service provider agency's identity; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the health care authority department be requested to review and analyze the data submitted by personal care service provider agencies and submit a report by September 1, 2025 and September 1 of each subsequent year to the legislative health and human services committee, the legislative finance committee and the governor that includes:

          A. the total number of full-time and part-time direct care workers in the state;

          B. a demographic analysis of the direct care worker workforce;

          C. the highest, lowest and average hourly wage paid to direct care workers;

          D. the average length of employment for direct care workers;

          E. the vacancy and turnover rates for direct care workers; and

          F. the availability and type of benefits provided by personal care service provider agencies to direct care workers; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the health care authority department be requested to contract for an independent biennial cost study for the purposes of determining the cost of providing personal care services and recommending reimbursement rates for personal care service provider agencies to cover those costs; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the health care authority department be requested to execute the contract for the initial cost study no later than December 31, 2024 and that the reimbursement rates in the cost study include consideration of:

          A. the additional costs that would be incurred by personal care service provider agencies if direct care workers employed by personal care service provider agencies were to be paid at least one hundred fifty percent of the state minimum wage;

          B. recent and projected changes in costs due to factors that include direct and indirect costs, inflation and changes to the applicable minimum wage; and

          C. direct care worker vacancies that affect personal care service provider agency costs; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the health care authority department be requested for each fiscal year to include sufficient funding in its budget request to implement the most recent cost study's recommended reimbursement rates that would allow all direct care workers employed by personal care service provider agencies to be paid at least one hundred fifty percent of the state minimum wage; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that copies of this memorial be transmitted to the governor, the secretary of health care authority, the New Mexico caregivers coalition, the legislative health and human services committee and the legislative finance committee.

- 6 -